Talia clamped down on her lips hard, a laugh rising up.
This was the easy banter between siblings she had always seen in her cousins, but being an only child, she hadn’t had that herself. She could banter with Grizz and Clint like they were siblings, but it wasn’t regular. Nothing could have made her feel more at home than this, and though Kellie had said they wouldn’t see much of Ryan while she was here, Talia was hoping that wasn’t actually true.
She’d enjoy seeing Ryan whenever she could.
“Knock it off,” Kellie said with a laugh. “Come on, Ry, we’ve got things to do before Christmas.”
He looked at his sister with a crooked grin again. “It’s March, Kells.”
“Exactly.” She gestured for him to get on with it. “Come on.”
Ryan relented and easily swung the large suitcase onto the bed, then set his hands at his hips, which emphasized his slender build, though his chest and torso seemed maxed out enough …
Talia’s cheeks flushed, and she looked down, pretending to brush a hair behind her ear, though everything was still neatly contained in her thick braid. “Thanks, Ryan.”
“No problem, ma’am. No charge, either.”
She glanced up at him and found him smiling at her, which didn’t help the flushing.
At all.
He dipped his chin in a small nod. “See you around.” Then he walked past her out of the room, patting Kellie’s arm fondly as he did so.
Ryan Prosper smelled like hay, leather, spice, and molasses cookies.
What in the world?
Talia did clear her throat now, and turned to face Kellie. “Did you want to do that interview now or …?”
Kellie smiled and nudged her head toward the suitcase and bed. “Go ahead and get unpacked, freshen up, what have you. I don’t have anything on my schedule for a few hours. Just head back down the hall and go past the living room down the same hall. Can’t miss it. My name’s on the door.”
“Right. Thanks, doc,” Talia replied, trying for the teasing nature that came so easily to Kellie and her brother.
Kellie nodded, not correcting her, though the smile was still in place. “One rule. Wear comfy shoes.”
Talia blinked. “What? Are we working out or walking or …?”
“None of the above,” Kellie assured her. “I’ve just found that people have a better intake interview experience in comfy shoes.” She shrugged and winked before turning to walk out of the room, tucking her hands into her jeans pockets.
It didn’t take Talia long to unpack and get her shirts and pants into the dresser and all. She hadn’t brought all that much, aside from several jackets and different pairs of shoes. She hadn’t been sure what sort of footwear would be needed on the ranch, as the description of “ranch duties” hadn’t been very specific. She had brought tennis shoes, hiking boots, dirty “backyard only” shoes, and a sturdy pair of rain boots, plus a pair of sandals and three pairs of flats, just in case they might come in handy.
Considering she’d only brought two shirts that couldn’t be classified as T-shirts, it wasn’t likely she would get out much aside from the regular stuff she’d have to do as part of her therapy.
She’d never had a shoe problem, per se, but a healthy appreciation for footwear was definitely in her nature.
Comfy shoes for her intake interview, though …
She really didn’t want to wear shoes at all right now, not after hiking her way through the airports to get here. She moved to the small drawer at the top of the dresser and pulled out a thick pair of socks, which she had tossed into her suitcase at the last minute, and quickly tugged those on.
Comfy meant no shoes for her, but she was polite enough to cover her feet when in someone else’s house.
At least she had that going for her.
She crept out of the bedroom, feeling the sudden urge to tiptoe, though she had yet to see any other people in this house except the Prosper siblings.
Was she the only guest at the ranch right now? That would be some really direct attention, and she wasn’t ready for that.
Biting her lip, Talia paused and knocked gently on the nearest door. When she heard nothing, she opened the door and peeked in. The bed was made, though it could barely be called that, and three pairs of shoes were at the foot of it.
She nodded to herself and closed the door, resuming her walk to Kellie’s office. She didn’t want to be the only broken heart on the ranch, so having at least one housemate was a relief. It wasn’t that she intended to suddenly become best friends with whoever she was, or that she wanted to spill all her secrets. She actually thought any sort of confessions on her part would be hard to come by. The facts were easy enough to admit, but as for the rest …
Nope. Not happening. And not to any strangers she was sharing a house with.
She just wanted to make sure there was enough mortification to go around rather than enduring target practice from a trigger-happy therapist.
She might be heading into her intake interview, but Talia had every intention of taking stock of Kellie Prosper as well. She had endured a therapy session or two in her life, especially after her dad had passed, and it hadn’t been a great experience. If this was going to head that direction, she’d shut herself off and play the game to endure her time at the ranch.
There was no way she was going to let herself get more broken than she already was just to fill someone’s quota.
Passing the living room, she stole a glance at the stone fireplace, smiling to herself as she picked the exact spot she would sit when it was cool enough to have a fire going.
Was it ever cool enough in Lost Creek for that?
She moved ahead, her eyes tracking the doors and seeing the slightly ajar one on the end. “Ten bucks says …” Talia murmured to herself as she neared.
Sure enough, a simple door plate had been fastened there, and it read, “Kellie Prosper, PhD, LPC, NCC, CCHMC.”
Not much simple about that alphabet soup, but Talia supposed that was good enough.
She exhaled softly, then knocked on the door.
“Come on in,” the warm Texan accent answered in an equally soft tone. “It’s open.”
Talia pushed the door open, smiling hesitantly. The room was a light green, something that reminded her of spring, but when the day was cloudy. It was soothing somehow, something mossy and fresh—she could almost smell the forest this color belonged in. There were no waterfall sounds, no divan for her to lie on, and no imposing bookshelf displaying tomes of knowledge and various awards.
There was, however, a tidy desk, an oversized chair, a perfectly manicured fern, and a neatly scripted quote on one wall. It was impossible to tell from her place if it had been painted on, or if the words were vinyl lettering, but her attention was drawn there.
A single step is enough.
Her brow furrowed at that. A single step was enough? A single step didn’t get anyone anywhere, wouldn’t accomplish anything. Why would a therapist who had opened a live-in clinic on a ranch, and had her clients work on said ranch, embrace the idea of a single step?
Images of the moon landing popped into her head, but she was fairly certain Kellie wasn’t living or modeling her patient care after the platitudes of astronauts.
But what did Talia know?
“Hi, Talia,” Kellie said simply, her smile suddenly gentle. “Ready?”